Labor candidate Katelin McInerney believes Kiama is a step closer to becoming “the cultural capital of the South Coast” after the NSW Government has committed $200,000 to Kiama Council towards establishing a Special Entertainment Precinct in the town.

McInerney and Minister for Music and the Night-time Economy John Graham joined Mayor Cameron McDonald, Councillors and members of the local hospitality businesses at The Grand on Tuesday to announce the funding.

The money will be used to form a night-time economy strategy and consult with local business owners, residents and authorities on establishing a Special Entertainment Precinct.

A community petition was submitted to Council last year aimed at reviving the night-time economy.

Kiama will join 19 other NSW councils that are progressing their own precincts or have passed motions in favour or exploring the option.

After consulting with the community, Council will set tailored trading hours and sound rules within the designated area.

Businesses within that precinct can then take up those conditions without the costly process of amending their individual development consents.

McInerney said the Precinct could do wonders for many local businesses which rely on the community getting out and about after dark.

“We, as a group of Kiama creatives, have been working with Kiama Council over the past 18 months to design and get our community on board with a Special Entertainment Precinct,” she said.

“This is an area that would allow for more activation in the middle of our town, help us build a more vibrant scene, help our venues and our businesses thrive all year round.”

Graham described it as “a big step forward”.

“What it means is it makes it easier to have music, to have venues trade a bit later, to make sure it's easy to move outdoors,” he said.

“That means big backing for some of the local businesses but it will also make Kiama a really more interesting place to visit, particularly after dark.

“We know it's worked elsewhere. We're backing this with a couple of hundred thousand dollars to make sure that the process really moves from here.

“I can't wait to see how this develops.”

Kiama Deputy Mayor Melissa Matters, Councillor Stuart Larkins, Minister for Music and the Night-time Economy John Graham, Mayor Cameron McDonald, Councillor Erica Warren and Labor candidate Katelin McInerney. Photo: The Bugle

Council has already started the night-time economy discussion through its visitor strategy plan.

“Their roundtable members have been a very big part of that conversation,” McInerney said.

“One of the things that people who've grown up here have noticed is the town on a Thursday or Friday night, it's just closing at about 9 o'clock, whereas I fondly remember the days of being able to stay out a lot later than that and be able to move from venue to venue and really get the full experience of what our town has to offer.

“This piece of work is so vital to making sure that not only our venues and our businesses have a more favourable environment to get innovative ideas and great music and live entertainment up through the year, but it also helps our local creative businesses who are really struggling in the current environment to get festivals off the ground, to make sure that we have these great pop-up events happening.

“Kiama should be an absolute cultural capital of the South Coast. And we just haven't met our potential in the 20 years since I was last playing here at The Grand with my friends’ punk band. We've actually seen it go backwards.

“Consultation is a really big part of this process. This needs to be driven by the community.”

Local residents are likely to express concerns about the potential for excessive noise or activity late at night but McInerney was confident they could get the balance right between their wishes and making sure that businesses can thrive.

“We are a tourist destination - we've just won our latest award for Kiama being a great place to come. We are a place people want to come for live entertainment and music.

“As local families, we want more of those opportunities but we absolutely need to balance that with residents' amenity as well.”

Graham said part of the challenge is that once an entertainment precinct is up and running, “letting people know that this is a lively part of town.

“It's what we call an eyes-wide-open clause. If you move into this part of town, you'll be notified that you're moving into an entertainment precinct, you know what to expect.”

Mayor McDonald said Council was “very appreciative” of the financial injection to explore how the Precinct would operate.

“I think it's a real testament to the advocacy of our local community and our council, and reflective of what we've been asking for as a community for a long period of time,” he said.

“Which is more vibrant economy, more night-time options and the ability for our local businesses, our musicians and our artists to come out and have a forum to be able to support our local community and give visitors to our region and our local people a platform that they can come out and enjoy what we have as a region and as a town to offer.”